Optical components are often connected to one another by optical fibers. Often one component, however, may be housed separately from another component and a plurality of optical fibers may be required to connect the two components. In that case, an opening may be provided in each housing, through which the connection optical fibers are fed. In the housing opening, a multi-fiber ferrule may be provided as a plug to seal the housing and secure the optical fibers. Since the fibers are typically arranged in a linear array, referred to as a fiber ribbon, the ferrule may include a relatively wide slot that receives the optical fibers. After the fibers are placed in the slot, a solder glass is inserted into the slot and melted or reflowed. Since the solder glass is at an elevated temperature, the materials that make up the ferrule (e.g., glass, metal alloys such as “Kovar”, and epoxy) have different coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE) and, thus, thermally expand at different rates, thereby placing a stress on the fibers. If the slots are relatively wide, those fibers closest to the ends of the slots experience the most stress and can break.
Accordingly, there is a need for a multi-fiber ferrule that can accommodate a relatively large number of optical fibers with reduced thermal stress.